New partnership expands support for students facing barriers to higher education at ACC’s Hays, Highland, and Riverside campuses.
Austin Community College District (ACC) is breaking new ground in student support with the launch of the Providing Access To Holistic Supports (PATHS) program in partnership with Communities In Schools (CIS) of Central Texas. The partnership was announced on Wednesday, September 24, at ACC Highland Campus.
The new initiative will serve 180 students facing some of the greatest barriers to higher education, including housing instability, homelessness, and parental incarceration.
“Students can’t succeed if they’re left to navigate barriers alone,” said ACC Chancellor Dr. Russell Lowery-Hart. “This partnership with CIS ensures students have the support they need to not just get to college, but through college. Together, we are creating a model for how colleges can transform lives and communities.”
“When the majority of our students who are growing up with economic barriers never make it to college, we are facing not just an education gap, but an economic crisis,” said Sharon Vigil, CEO of CIS of Central Texas. “Our region is one of the fastest-growing areas of the country—and yet so many of our young people are being locked out of that growth. Education is the economic engine that sustains communities. If we want to see Central Texas thrive, we have to make sure our students thrive.”
PATHS provides dedicated spaces and tailored case management at ACC’s Hays, Highland, and Riverside campuses. Students will receive one-on-one guidance, access to resources, and mentorship to help them persist, complete, and thrive in college.
“When we wrap our students in support, they complete at a higher rate, and they actually matriculate into family-sustaining wages. They’re meeting the employee demand and employer demands in our community,” said Lowery-Hart, “What’s going to get them from enrollment to success is relationships with people that can help them navigate the systems and deep, intentional systemic supports around basic needs.”
“It definitely always felt like a support system was there. I very much feel like I try to be outgoing, but deep down I’m very afraid of reaching out, and it feels like they’re [CIS] always there, you know, pushing me and encouraging me to step out of my boundaries and reach for the stars,” said Reyes Cosme, ACC Culinary Arts student.
CIS and ACC developed the PATHS program to create support for students—removing barriers and creating a seamless transition from high school to college—with funding from the Greater Texas Foundation and the Sooch Foundation.
The program reflects ACC’s commitment to removing barriers outside the classroom, connecting students with resources such as housing, food, child care, transportation, and mental health support so they can stay focused on their education and future careers.
For more information about the PATHS program, visit austincc.edu/paths.
View photos from the announcement in the Flickr album below.
